


In Exchange For You

by karmaswhiskee



Category: Naruto
Genre: Angst and Romance, Car Sex, Depression, Developing Relationship, Eventual Romance, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Men Crying, Mental Anguish, Mental Breakdown, Mental Health Issues, Mental Instability, Multi, Murder, Oral Sex, Original Character(s), POV Female Character, Relationship(s), Romance, Rough Sex, Semi-Public Sex, Sex, Sexual Violence, Sick Character, Tragic Romance, Vaginal Sex, Wattpad Romance's Romance Friday
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-22
Updated: 2021-01-29
Packaged: 2021-03-14 10:01:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 5
Words: 10,179
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28918749
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/karmaswhiskee/pseuds/karmaswhiskee
Summary: He came from America, where dreams come true, to Australia, where beauty and happiness meet. For once, the American dream couldn't be found in America. It crossed oceans, just for me.
Relationships: Uchiha Itachi & Original Character(s), Uchiha Itachi & Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 3
Kudos: 1





	1. Yankee Doodle Went to Aussie

**Author's Note:**

> I'm new to AO3, so I'm excited to publish on here and (hopefully) add another good work to this vast collection! I'm moving here from Wattpad, so please bear with me as I've only been publishing my works for 3 years with little feedback from readers. All criticism is welcome! I want to write to the best of my abilities. Okay, now you can enjoy the story! :)

**Lyra's POV:**

Mum closes the car door as we walk to the airport from the parking structure. Cars race around in it and one almost hits me. I look into the driver's eyes before sticking up my middle finger and yelling, "Asshole! It's not a bloody racetrack!"

When we finally get onto a sidewalk, mum hits me upside the head. "Stop swearing all the time!" She growls.

I rub my head and whine, "That idiot almost hit me!" _Not like you'd care._

She only glares at me. I look away and roll my eyes, following the short sidewalk to the entrance of the airport. We go inside and look for the signs pointing to where everyone gets off the planes. We're here to pick up the exchange student we're housing. Being who we are, we're a tad late, so we fast walk over there and pull out a sheet of copy paper that reads 'Itachi Uchiha'. I smile and hold it up when I start to see people coming down the escalator. Eagerly, I study everybody's faces and wait for the Uchiha to appear. Just when I'm starting to get bored, I see one of the most handsome men I've ever seen coming down the escalator. I recognize him from the picture Aurora showed me when I found out he was coming to live with is. _He's just as gorgeous in person._

Itachi gets down to us and notices me staring. I'm not normally the creepy type to watch someone like that, but I couldn't pull my eyes away. He smiles at me and then my mum before putting down his carry-on bag and holding out his hand. "Hello there, Ms. Scully!" He keeps his soft, polite smile.

"Ello there, Itachi!" She smiles and takes his outstretched hand. I look to the ground to hide my blush as she shakes it. His attention shifts to me. My mum clears her throat and slowly lift my head up. _Get your shit together Lyra._ I smile at him with just a hint of red still on my cheeks. "And you must be Lyra," He says.

I bite the inside of my cheek. "Yeah. It's good to meet you, Itachi," I say as I study his face. I take in his sharp features, flawless skin, gorgeous eyes, and kissable lips. As I study his face, I can feel him doing the same to mine. I hold out my hand to shake, still lost in his eyes. When he takes it, I smile more at the warmth I felt. I know we've been staring at each other too long when I felt my mum's eyes burning into the side of my head. I promptly let go of his hand and look at my mum.

"Itachi, do you know where your luggage is going to be?" Mum asks.

"I believe it is over there," he points to a baggage conveyor.

We walk over to it and wait for Itachi to find his stuff. After a few minutes, he turns around, still smiling. "I can't find my luggage. Can you help me please?"

I mirror his kind smile, "Sure!"

He smiles more. "It's a black suitcase with a red and white fan symbol as the identification tag."

"Okay," I smile as he walks around to the other side of the conveyor. I start to help him look for his suitcase on the side opposite him. Almost immediately, I see it. _Odd. It's pretty obvious_.

I pick it up off the conveyor and walk to him with the bag in tow. "Found it," I tap him on the shoulder.

He takes a couple of seconds to turn around, but when he does he has a warm smile on. I study his face. _Well, that looks a little forced..._

"Lyra?"

_Fuck! I'm staring again!_ "Hmm? Oh, sorry," I smile sheepishly. "I get lost in thought easily."

Itachi's smile turns into somewhat of a smirk. "I wonder what you're thinking about then," He muses. I stay silent and look at the ground. 

"Did you find it yet?" My mum comes up. Itachi simply nods in response. "Okay then! Let's get this show on the road!" She says with a smile and walks off.

We follow her through the airport and to the car. Itachi loads his luggage into the boot. Just as I'm about to get in the passenger's seat, my mum stops me. "What are you doing?! Ask Itachi if he wants the front seat!" She whisper-yells at me. I glare and roll my eyes again.

"Oi Itachi? Do you want the front seat?" I look at him.

His smile never leaves his face. "I'm okay, thank you."

I shrug and get into the car, ignoring my mum's glares as she starts up the car. "I hope you like our flat!" She says. I turn around and smile at him when we're half-way home. "Everything has been freshly cleaned just for you and we have your room all ready. You can just settle in and later, Lyra can show you around Perth." My mum brags.

"That sounds wonderful, Ms. Scully," He responds politely.

"Oh please, you're practically my son for the next year. Call me Sara."

I look at his face in the rearview mirror and hold in my giggles. He looks uncomfortable. "O-okay then... Sara?" He says her name with caution.

She nods. The rest of the drive home is in uncomfortable silence. Itachi is looking out the window, watching his new world go past him, my mum is watching the road ahead and I've got my head against the window with my earphones in.

My mother doesn't really pay me attention. _Not that I mind much anymore._ Her suddenly nagging me and actually acting like my parent throws me off. It makes me angry, her acting like she's a great mother. Our guest will probably never know the truth about her. He'll be oblivious as he spends his year with us, probably ignoring me and going about his life. I look at him in the rearview mirror. _The last thing I need is some damn crush..._


	2. I'll Be Back

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lyra quickly grows annoyed by her mother's mistreatment of her. She ditches Itachi to go to her bestie's house.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please read the note at the end!

**Lyra's POV:**

After the car ride home, everyone got out of the car. My mum dragged Itachi to our flat and left me with his luggage. I roll my eyes and I get his suitcases out of the boot before I slam it shut. I groan in annoyance when I realize that I have to carry it up the stairs because I'm scared of elevators. Eventually, I get to the apartment and try to open the door. It's locked, of course. I sigh and knock on the door. No one comes to open it. I figure my mum is too busy dragging poor Itachi around the place, showing him where everything is. _Great._ After a few minutes of standing there feeling like an idiot, someone finally opens the door. It's Itachi. He's got his exhausted little smile plastered on his face and dark bags under his eyes. I get more annoyed. Even when he looks like shit, he still looks good.

"Your luggage, sir," I say with sarcasm dripping from my voice. I leave the suitcase just outside the door and push past him, heading to my room and bellyflopping onto the bed. I feel bad for being a dick to the guy- after all, my mum treating me like a servant isn't his fault, but I'm still annoyed at him for some reason. _Way to be bipolar Lyra!_

I roll my eyes and groan into my pillow before getting up. I shut the door and lock it, so I can pick out something comfortable to change into. I smirk when I spot Aurora's favorite set of underwear stuffed in my draw- a lacy, black bra and matching underwear. He loves how it looks against my tanned, olive skin. When I'm sick of being in this place I'm supposed to call home, I often go to Aurora's house. He's all I've got here. I put on the underwear and put my skinny jeans back on. I put a blue hoodie on instead of my singlet, completing my slightly emo look. The black skinny jeans hug my toned legs nicely and the rips in it give anyone looking a nice glimpse of the smooth skin underneath. After checking myself out in the mirror, I smirk more and grab my phone.

I unlock my door and leave the room, trying to rush out of the door. "Lyra! Why don't you show Itachi around the city?" My mother suggests in that 'don't-be-rude' all mothers seem to have.

Hearing his name, Itachi comes out of his new room. He smiles nervously, "That would be great, but possibly another time? Jet lag is really not treating me well," his nervous smile turns into a charming one. _Thank God!_

"Oh! Okay then dear. You rest up!" My mum smiles back.

I roll my eyes and walk out the door. "I'm going to Aurora's!" I yell. "Not like you care," I mutter when I'm met with silence.

I walk out the door and walk to the nearest bus stop. After waiting for a little, the bus comes and I get on. While on the bus, I text Aurora to let him know I'm on my way over. After about half an hour, I get to his house. Aurora's family is quite wealthy, so he lives in a gorgeous house. It's two stories tall and built with these gorgeous gray and white bricks. It has a cute little garden I occasionally help Aurora take care of and a garage that could fit two cars if you wanted to risk it.

I walk up to the door and ring the doorbell. "I forgot my key!" I complain to the camera attached to the bell.

I hear the door unlock and when it opens, I see Aurora standing there. "You lost it again?" He asks, annoyed.

"Yup! Now let me in."

"That Uchiha boy arrived today, didn't he?"

"Mhm! And damn is that boy hot! He's like the perfect mix of kind of feminine looking, but also looking like some male model. From what I've seen so far, he's exactly like the rumors- quiet, polite, and cute." I walk in and sit on the couch.

"He sounds interesting, but," He smirks. "You could have just texted me that."

I blush a little before mirroring his smirk. "Can't a girl just come over to see her bestie?"

"Yeah... But looking at the blush you're trying to hide with a smirk, I think you came for something else," his hand goes to my thigh. He rubs it slowly inches his hand closer to my heat. Aurora notices the shiver of excitement that spreads throughout my body and chuckles softly. "You want me, don't you?"

I just nod again, ready to jump his bones. "Well! That's too bad! I'm not really in the mood," he gets up from the couch and walks to the kitchen behind us.

I frown. "Auroraaa! Don't be such a tease!" Pouting as he laughs at me. _Two can play that game_.

I walk up behind him while he's at the fridge and hug him from behind. Then I let my hands wander up to his chest before I slip them under his shirt. He tenses up as I gently trace his abs with my nails. I let one hand move back down to his hardening groin and slowly rub it through the fabric of his shorts. _I_ _'ve got him._ "Don't act like you don't want me, master," I smirk when I feel him get harder.

He barely tries to resist and gives into me quickly. He manages to turn around and grab my arms, pushing me up against the fridge door and raking his eyes over my body.

"What a naughty tease you're being, love," he whispers. "I think I'll have to punish you for that..." 

"You did it first. I was only repaying the favor," I say with a smirk still on my face.

He mirrors my smirk as lust clouds his eyes. Our height difference makes him tower over me, which only excites me more. Still keeping my hands above my head with one hand, he uses his other to grab my chin. "Whatcha waiting for, mas-" I'm cut off by Aurora pressing his lips to mine.

He kisses me hungrily- almost as if he's never tasted me before. I keep smirking and deepen the kiss, my hands itching to weave my fingers in his hair. I let his tongue roam my mouth and dominate mine. His hand moves from my chin to my breasts and gives my left breast a firm squeeze. I softly moan to encourage him. He picks me up, grabbing my ass to do so. I lock my legs around his waist and tangle my fingers in his hair. When he turns around and places me on the counter, I groan at the feeling of him grinding on me.

"You're going to wish you kept that pretty little mouth of yours shut," He whispers darkly into my ear before he starts kissing my neck.

"Pr-prove it..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everybody! I hope you enjoyed the lime in this chapter! The next chapter will basically be a lemon chapter, so if you don't like that, you can skip it. It doesn't really affect the plot. Also, please tell me kinks y'all have. I'm planning on writing quite a few lemon chapters in here, so I'd like to know what you guys like!


	3. Make Me Feel Better

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> [⚠18+ CONTENT. READER DISCRETION ADVISED] Aurora and Lyra have vanilla sex.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There is still a sub (Lyra) and Dom (Aurora) dynamic, so if that makes you uncomfortable, please don't read this chapter.

**Lyra's POV:**

"Aur-Aurora!" I stutter as I feel his tongue glide over another hickey.

His hands tightly grip my hips while my legs are wrapped around his waist. His threat to ravish me still hangs in the air making my core heat up and my body tingle in anticipation. His kisses move back up my collarbone and my neck, making their way back to my swollen lips. His tongue invades my mouth again and dominates my own, leaving me breathless. With every kiss and every movement of his hips, my stress melts away. Lust drowns out my other emotions until all that's left is my need for him.

"I need you," I moan softly into his ear. His grip on me tightens and he grunts when I teasingly grind my thigh on his caged arousal. "Please..." I beg.

Aurora responds by moving his hands down to my ass and smirks. "What a naughty girl you are, begging for me like this," He growls.

"Mm. What are you going to do about it?" I smirk. I'm getting what I want and he knows it.

"Take off your hoodie," He demands.

I do what he says and slowly lift it off, tossing it on the kitchen floor. Seductively, I bite my bottom lip and look into his eyes. The cold countertop does little to cool the burn in between my legs as I wait for his next move.

Aurora rests his hands on my thighs briefly before unbuttoning my jeans. Then he hastily pulls them off, stopping only to smirk at what's underneath.

"God, you're so needy," He teases, running his hands up and down my body.

I whisper in a husky voice, "Only for you master."

He greedily kisses me again while he takes off his own shirt, exposing his muscular torso. I unbutton his jeans, desperate to get the clothing out of my way. He stops his assault on my lips only to slip off his jeans and boxers, letting his length free of its cloth prison. It rubs against my thigh as he slips his hands under my bra, eventually unhooking it. His rough kisses move down my neck to find more sweet spots of mine he can ruin. His hands keep roaming my body as if they can't decide what they want to grope and tease first.

Finally, he moves my black panties to the side. Without looking, he rubs his middle finger around my entrance, groaning at how wet I am. He spreads my juices up to my clit, making me shiver and give a low moan.

"Fuck Lyra. You're so wet and I've barely touched you," He licks his lips, his voice heavy with lust.

He put shoves his middle finger into me, making me gasp. "Au-Aurora!" He then slowly pumps his finger in and out.

"Aurora please..." I groan, trying to roll my hips. He chuckles deeply in response.

"Tsk tsk. So impatient," He smirks and suddenly adds another finger.

I cry out and start to moan as he pumps faster, occasionally curling them. My body shakes from the wonderful roughness of his touch and I crave every inch of him. I moan and mewl at every motion. He speeds up, bringing me closer and closer to the edge.

"Please don't stop!" I beg as electricity runs through my body.

That's what he was waiting for. He immediately stops and my orgasm slips through my fingers. I whine as Aurora leaves marks all along my neck and breasts.

"I never said I would let you cum, pet," He keeps smirking. After swirling his fingers in me one more time, he takes them out and shoves them in my mouth. "Suck them and maybe I'll fuck you."

I swirl my tongue around his fingers, delicately gliding my teeth along his finger pads. He groans and slightly parts his fingers so I can flick my tongue around them individually, making him shiver. He uses his other hand to tease my opening, slowly rubbing my clit. He takes his fingers out of my mouth and attacks my lips. 

"Open your legs wider," He mumbles.

I do as I'm told, opening them as wide as I can. Anything I can do to get him inside me as quickly as possible. I bite my lip as I watch him put his tip at my entrance, desperately wanting him to push into my wet folds. He pushes the tip in before pulling out and repeats his movements again. I push my hips forward to show that my patience is running thin. 

"Aurora!" I growl. 

Finally, I feel him push into me. I moan as I feel my walls stretch around him, remembering how to accommodate his girth. He kisses me again, roughly moving in and out of me. Each thrust has me moaning into his lips. I try to meet his thrusts, mewling every time I do. Aurora grunts, letting my lips swallow his moans.

I move my kisses down his chin and along his jawline. "I wanna hear you, master. You know I love those sounds you make." I coax, clenching firmly around him to convince him to moan out loud. 

Again, his fingers dig into my hips, accidentally pushing me just a tad father back onto the counter. This makes me feel even tighter and I cry out. Aurora moans as well, enjoying how it feels to have me wrapped around him, begging for more. 

"You-you're so naughty..." he chokes out. 

I keep leaving marks on his skin, slowly moving down his throat. His hand moves down my body and starts to rub my clit. I moan louder and the electric feeling of the beginnings of an orgasm starts to run through my whole body. I enjoy the explosion of pleasure that erupts throughout me. It's overwhelming, but oh so amazing at the same time. I shake slightly when he keeps going, still pounding into my now sensitive hole. I can't even moan his name, instead, moaning out broken syllables. I suck on the skin of his throat before moving to his jugular and eventually his collarbone. Aurora joins me in getting louder, moving one hand from my hip to my breast as he copes with the pleasure. He rolls my nipple before pitching it and squeezing my boob. The hand that was on my hip moves down to my sensitive bundle of nerves, roughly rubbing it to cause me to start whithering around him.

"You better cum again before I do," he growls. I nod in response, not able to form words. 

He starts slamming harder into me, his movements starting to get sloppy as he nears his end. I start shaking when his cock finds my g-spot. Aurora notices how I get even louder when he hits it and makes sure to abuse that spot. I moan louder, almost to the point of screaming as I start to cum again. Tears prick my eyes as overwhelming pleasure courses through my veins. 

"Fuck Lyra!" he moans. 

I start to feel his thrusts get sloppier as he starts to climax, so I clench around him to milk him dry. Aurora slows his movements and nuzzles his face into the crook of my neck. He softly kisses my skin as we both take deep breathes. 

"You still manage to feel so good. Normally I get bored after the second time," he chuckles.

I giggle. "Well, a new experiment. We've fucked, what? Ten times?" I tease.

"Rude! It's eleven!"

"Mmm, I guess one of those times wasn't very memorable."

Aurora nips my neck. "Well, I guess I should make up for it."

I shake my head. "No thank you... I'll be too overstimulated."

He smirks and pushes himself further inside me. "That's not my problem, now is it?"

I bite my lip to suppress a moan. "A-Aurora, I can't handle it."

"Oh? Do you wanna use the safe word?" 

"N-no..." 

He picks me up and kisses me. "Then, let's see if I get bored after twelve."

"Challenge accepted, master," I smile as Aurora takes me to his room. I'm in for a long night.


	4. Let Me Show You Around

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lyra decides to show Itachi around the place he'll be calling home for a year.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If no one gets the Banana Fish reference I made in this chapter, I'm going to be upset.

** Lyra's POV: **

I yawn, sitting up slowly. Aurora keeps his arm around my waist and pulls me closer in his sleep. I'd find it adorable if he wasn't preventing me from going to the bathroom.

"Aurora..." I kiss his forehead, "I have to use the bathroom."

He groans and kisses my stomach. "You never let yourself stay," he pulls me closer and whines.

"I stay sometimes! I just have the show the Uchiha around Perth. Otherwise, the poor boy will be stuck in the flat with that nightmare-ish woman," I smile.

"Poor guy. You better go save him!" Aurora laughs and lets me go.

I quickly get out of bed, ready to rush to the bathroom. "Auroraaa! I thought you agreed not to fuck me so roughly," I pout, stretching my muscles to try and ease the soreness in my limbs.

He laughs harder. "You weren't complaining about that yesterday. I believe you were more along the lines of-" he starts to try and mimic my voice. "More master! Please don't stop! Mmm yes!"

I blush slightly, embarrassed. "Wha-whatever!" My pathetic comeback only leads to him laugh at me more.

I stick my tongue out at him before heading into the bathroom. Turning the shower on, I pee while I wait for the water to warm up. When it's at a good temperature, I get in and start to wash my hair. As I feel the warm water run down my body, I think about the reason I came to Aurora; how he so easily distracts me from the dull thud of pain in my heart. The pain that reminds me that my mother's neglect still hurts me. I shake my head and instead, think about Aurora's fingers gliding over my skin, about the hot trails of need that he leaves with every touch. My mind then shifts to thoughts of Itachi. I felt an instant connection with him. His gorgeous eyes that hide so much draw me in and make me want to explore his mind, to understand him. _I wonder how it would feel with his hands touching me_. I bite my lip, ready to let my imagination and my own hands wander.

"Oi, Lyra! Do you want goat or lamb curry?" Aurora yells.

Startled, I turn off the shower to hear him better. "For breakfast?!"

"Why not?"

"Uhh, both?" I answer in a hopeful tone.

I don't wait for his answer, turning the water back on and getting to work washing the conditioner out of my hair. I quickly wash my body before turning the water off and hopping out of the shower. I grab a towel before exiting the bathroom.

"You owe me!" he says sternly.

I giggle and walk in front of him with only a towel wrapped around my naked body. I bite my bottom lip and let my eyes slowly travel up his body. Only black boxer briefs keep him covered.

I get closer to him while he's on the phone with the place we're getting breakfast from. "Of course, Master..." I trail off and walk past him to get some clean clothes on. I can feel his eyes burning holes in the back of my skull as he talks to a worker on the phone.

Quickly, I slip my undergarments on and decide on some ripped denim shorts. I'm looking for a black crop top when I feel warm hands grab my hips from behind.

I stay bent over, smirking, "Was yesterday not enough for you, Aurora?"

"Don't think I'll forget about the way you were acting while I was on the phone. I'll get you back for that."

Ignoring his threat, I keep looking for my top while his hands roam my lower half, gently grabbing my ass and rubbing me through the denim. I bite down my tongue to suppress a small moan. He keeps teasing me, his fingers ever so lightly rubbing my clit and tracing my opening. Now and then, he presses a finger that would penetrate me if my clothes weren't there to block him. It feels good enough for me to periodically letting out soft moans. "Aurora, please..." I beg quietly.

"Look at you, teasing me and then getting all needy for me. Don't start something you can't finish," he smirks before pulling away.

I frown, finally finding my top and putting it on. I watch him grab a random shirt and shorts before he walks out of the closet. I follow him. Leaning against the door frame, I watch him get dressed.

"You're a damn perv," he accuses.

"Hey, you signed up for this! Don't start complaining now!" I smile, my eyes roaming his body.

Narrowing his eyes at me, he playfully threatens, "I'm going to beat your ass if you keep looking at me like that." 

"Ooo kinky."

Aurora slips his shorts and looks me dead in the eyes. _Run_. I take off, sprinting out of the bedroom, desperately trying to find somewhere to hide. I hear his heavy footfalls behind me as he seemingly catches up to me. I make a sudden turn, hearing a _thud_ followed by a string of profanities. Then, I dash for the bathroom, quickly locking the door.

"Heyy no fair!" he whines. "You're smaller than me, so you can make shaper turns! Thanks to you, I hurt my hip!"

I laugh. "You're such a big baby!"

I can practically hear the playful pout on my best friend's face. "Well, you're a meanie!"

I laugh more, not even bothering to try hiding my giggles. After a few minutes, I hear the doorbell ring. "Food's here!" Aurora calls as he walks to the front door.

"Truce!" I yell before I cautiously open the bathroom door. I walk to the front door, seeing Aurora animatedly talking to someone.

"How much do I owe you?" I ask.

Aurora simply turns around and smirks. "Got you."

My eyes widen in horror when I realize no one is in front of him. I try to run, but he's quick to grab me by my waist, causing me to let out a surprised yelp. He pins me to the wall and holds my hands above my head.

"Hmmm, where to start first?" he smirks more, as his eyes give off a mischievous gleam.

"Aurora, no! Please don't!" I beg.

He ignores my pleas and eyes a spot where my crop top is riding up, exposing my skin. Then, he starts tickling my ribs.

"A-Aur-Aurora! St-Stop it!" I stutter through my laughter.

"But you're laughing! Why would I want to stop you from being happy?" he teases, his attacks moving to my armpits.

I shriek with laughter, struggling against his hold. He keeps tickling me, making me laugh so much I honestly start to believe I'll have abs by the time he is done.

"Umm? I have your food," a random voice says.

Aurora immediately lets me go and I cling to the wall, greedily taking in big gulps of air. "Uhhh hey!" he smiles sheepishly.

"So uh, your total is 34.95," the guy holds out a couple of bags containing the food Aurora ordered for us.

I take them, smiling gratefully to the deliveryman. Then I go to the dining room, carefully taking the food out of the bags and setting the table. _This looks so fucking good._

"Oi Lyra! You owe me 17.48," Aurora walks in smiling.

It is then I realize that I didn't bring my wallet. "Uhh, can I pay you back later? I forgot my wallet," I ask.

"We both know you'll forget," he laughs.

"Then why don't you remember to remind me?"

"Because I'm gonna forget too," he pauses, smirking. "So how are you going to pay me back for this food huh?"

"Ummm I can set a reminder on my phone an-"

He cuts me off. "You're the one who said you want to pay half so you don't feel like you're taking advantage of me for my wealth," he reminds me.

I giggle nervously. He's right, of course. I asked him to make sure I pay him back for stuff because I feel guilty if I feel like I'm using him for his money.

"Maybe just this one time?" I smile hopefully.

"No."

I sigh in defeat. I know what he wants. "Fine. You can pick the movie this week and I'll pay for the snacks."

His smirk turns into a childish smile. "Yes! Frozen it is!"

"Ughhh I can't stand the first one. Can we at least watch the second one?" I beg.

"Only if you bring the Uchiha," he smirks again.

I huff in annoyance. "Now who's taking advantage of who?"

He laughs at me, so I ignore him and dig into my food. As soon as I get a taste of the curry we ordered, I forget I exist. All I know is this food is delicious and I want more. Eventually, Aurora and I finish our food and clean up.

"Okay, I'm leaving now!" I yell.

"Do you want me to drive you?" Aurora yells back.

"Nah, I'm good. Thanks though!"

"Okay love! Have fun!"

I smile. "I will."

∆∆∆∆∆∆

I knock on my apartment door, waiting for someone to open it. I'm pleasantly surprised when the door opens almost immediately to reveal an exhausted-looking Itachi. His smile is finally faltering and he looks beyond glad to see someone other than my mother.

"Lyra's home!" he calls out in a relieved tone.

Itachi welcomes me inside and surprises me again with a desperate hug. "Please save me," he whispers in my ear.

I chuckle quietly. "Mum. I'm taking Itachi out to see Perth."

"Okay Honey!" she answers.

"Go get changed into something casual, but fashionable. Perth is full of judgmental people," I warn.

He nods and runs to his room. I go into mine, grabbing my mini backpack which contains my wallet, keys, and a few other things. I decide to put some make-up on, heeding the warning I gave Itachi. I do the full nine yards, doing my best to enhance my natural features and give myself some flair. I'm in the middle of putting mascara on when Itachi appears in the doorway.

"You looked nice without the make-up..." he says.

I finish what I'm doing and turn to face him. "I know you're trying to compliment me, but please don't be _that_ guy."

He looks a little taken aback. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to offend you!"

"It's fine, I understand. Thank you for the compliment," I smile.

He seems to get that he's not in trouble, so I turn back to the mirror to finish up my look. The poor boy just stands awkwardly at my door, waiting for me to finish.

"How long will you two be out?" my mother's voice pierces the silence.

I sigh. "No idea. We'll see where the day takes us."

"Where will we be going to first?" Itachi asks.

"I was just going to take a train into the heart of the city and go to whatever interests you."

"Sounds great!" he smiles. This time, I get the feeling this is a real smile; not the forced, polite smile he wears like a mask.

I finish my make-up and get up, putting my mascara into my mini bag as I walk out of my room. "Did you get your wallet?" I ask.

"Yes."

"And your phone?"

"Yes." 

"And anything else you need, like a jacket?"

A light seemingly goes on in Itachi's head and he runs back to his room. He reemerges with a black jacket that has red clouds on it. "I get cold easily," he admits.

Finally, we're ready to go. "We're leaving now."

"Okay! Be careful you two!"

"Yeah," I barely acknowledge her.

"Thank you, Ms. Sara!" he says as I usher him out of the door.

We get to the first floor of the apartment building and I start leading Itachi to the train station. As we're walking, I try to start a conversation with him.

"So uhh... Where in America are you from?" I ask.

"I lived in Southern California for most of my life, but I was actually born in Japan," he smiles again.

"That's cool! How long did you live there?"

"Until I was about five. Then we moved to America and I've lived there ever since. What about you?"

"What about me?"

His smile turns into an almost smirk. "Don't bother acting like you aren't from America."

I narrow my eyes. "I'm not."

"Then what's with the American accent?"

"I lived in Georiga for most of my life," I shiver as unwanted memories start to surface.

"What school did you go to?" his interest seemingly peaks.

"Taylor Hill High School..." I answered quietly, praying that he won't make the connection.

"Isn't that the high school that had some student almost-"

"Oh look! We're at the train station!"

Itachi gives me an 'I'm-going-to-bring-this-back-up' look, but I ignore it, dragging him on to a random train. I strike up a conversation with him again, this time carefully avoiding the topic of America. Instead, I decide to talk to him about Australia, places he wants to visit, Japan, and food.

"So you know Japanese? That must be nice!" I smile.

"Yeah, it's especially good because I can watch anime without waiting for English versions to come out."

I laugh before saying, "Yeah, I've gotta wait for the subtitles. I did try learning Japanese, but I found it next to impossible to understand much of what I was doing after the first class."

"Oh? Maybe I could try teaching you," his smirk reappears. _I'm growing quite fond of that damn smirk of his._

"You could try, but I'm pretty stupid, so good luck dude!"

"What makes you think you're stupid?" he questions.

"I don't think I'm stupid. I know it."

"Interesting."

"What?"

"Well," Itachi gives me a thoughtful look. "I've noticed, that stupid people often aren't aware that they're stupid; usually, their thoughts on their intelligence are quite the opposite."

That thought has me go completely quiet and for the rest of the train ride, we sit in comfortable silence as I consider the Uchiha's words. His eyes occasionally shift to my face, then quickly look away. He believes he's getting away with it, but I notice almost immediately. I let it slide the first few times, but eventually, I start to worry that something is wrong with my make-up.

"Did I mess up my make-up?"

"Huh?!" Itachi looks like he wasn't expecting me to say anything.

"My face," I pause, giving him a weird look. "You keep looking at it, so I'm asking if something is wrong with it."

He seems to consider his answer carefully before donning his trademark smirk. "Nothing's wrong with your face. I'm just looking at you because you're gorgeous."

I choke on my spit and start coughing violently. He watches me die with amusement flickering in his eyes. When I start being able to breathe properly again, the train stops.

"Can we get off here?"

Trying to hide my blush, I take a deep breath before answering, "Su-sure!"

As soon as we step off of the train, Itachi spots a sign advertising for a Dango shop and drags me to it. "I was worried Australia wouldn't have Dango!" he smiles.

"Why would a country that is located near Asian countries with millions of Asian immigrants not have Dango?" I giggle.

He's silent for a couple of beats. "Oh... I guess I didn't think of that." He walks into the shop, looking around.

"It smells so good in here," I take a deep breath in through my nose.

"I'm glad you think so!" someone says. I look around to see a happy looking old man. "Everything is made fresh and by hand!"

Itachi's eyes light up. "Can I get a plate of three Dango sticks please?"

The old man nods, looking at me. "Um, I'll get three as well please."

"I'll be right back!"

The Uchiha and I sit in silence as we await the man's return, every now and then stealing glances at each other. I sigh, finally deciding to shoot my shot. "Ya know, you're not too bad looking yourself."

He looks at me with complete confusion written all over his face. "What?"

"Ea-earlier on the train, you said I'm gorgeous."

"Ahh yes, I remember now," he gives me a lopsided grin. "I meant it too."

"Oh? Careful there Itachi Uchiha. I'm being to think you actually mean it."

"What if I do?"

"Well..." I mirror the smirk he now wears, "I'll have to do something about that then, won't I?"

"Seems that way," he leans back in his chair and crosses one leg over the other. _Now that's hot._

I get up from my seat and drape my arms over his shoulders. I put my lips to his ear and whisper, "I've been told my tongue is like velvet."

He blushes and subtly covers his growing erection with his hands. "Is that so?" 

"If you don't believe me, you can always see for yourself..." 

"Oh really now?"

"I can take you to heaven in five minutes..." I softly kiss his cheek. 

He gulps, getting a little antsy. "I don-" 

"And here's your Dango!" the smiley old man interrupts.

I look up and smile. "Thank you so much!"

Itachi smiles up at the man and nods in thanks. We wait for him to leave and I go back to my seat.

"You're quite the tease," he muses.

I bite my lip. "Do you want to go to a party?"

"Pardon?"

"A party. It's across Perth, so we can slowly make our way over."

"Sure, I don't see why not."

"It will be great. I'll call Aurora and he can meet us there."

"Who's Aurora? Didn't you go see him yesterday?" 

"Yeah. He's my best friend."

"Is that code for boyfriend?" he chuckles.

"Nope."

"Good to know..." 

I catch his drift and giggle. "Indeed."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This 3,000+ word chapter is going to be my new goal length for each chapter from now on! I hope everyone is staying home and safe! COVID-19 has been so scary and I know people who have it. I'm an essential worker so I see so many imbeciles who don't wear masks. I'm begging you to wear your masks! Keep up with all the announcements your country is making. I love you all (unless you won't wear a mask).


	5. Rohypnol

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lyra takes Itachi to a pub. Unfortunately for him, an unwanted visitor shows up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [⚠18+ CONTENT. SEXUAL HARASSMENT/BATTERY- READER DISCRETION ADVISED.]
> 
> Please read the end note.

** Itachi's POV: **

"You ready?"

I roll my eyes. "You know I've been to a party before, right?"

"You look nervous," she teases.

"Pfft, no! I'm an Uchiha! I don't get nervous!"

Rolling her eyes, Lyra holds out her hand, offering to escort me inside. I smile gratefully and take it, but instead of just walking inside the building, I bring her hand to my lips and place a soft kiss. This causes her to blush ever so slightly. Confident I didn't notice the slight redness of her cheeks, she beings poking fun at me again.

"Well aren't you the gentleman?"

"Of course," I keep smiling as I look around at the rather dirty brick walls. "So, remind me again why we're in an alleyway."

"I'm not eighteen yet, so I'm not allowed in."

"Okay? How are we getting in the side door?"

"I work here."

"Huh?"

She sighs. "Aurora owns the place and I work as a waitress."

"Ohh, I see." _I wonder who Aurora is to her._

As if she read my mind, she says, "He's my best and only friend here," then she pauses as if she's considering if she should say anything else. "And we have a thing."

"A thing?" I ask. I think the slight prick of jealousy might have made its way into my words because Lyra smirks mischievously.

"Well," she makes eye contact with me before saying, "We fuck."

"Oh?" I try not to look too caught off guard by her blunt attitude. If I didn't notice her sexual confidence and straightforward personality before in the Dango shop- I do now.

"Mmm. A lot of girls don't like me for that, just so you know. So if they get a little bitchy, let it go," she said while adjusting her cropped top to show just a tad more cleavage.

I have to physically turn my head to keep some of my pride. "Noted."

With that, she opens the door and escorts me into the bar. I wasn't overwhelmed by the noise like I normally was, which was a nice change from the norm. The pub is still packed though, so Lyra struggles to get us to the bar.

"Order whatever you want, Itachi."

"But I'm not twenty-one?"

That girl busts out in laughter that is exactly graceful, but it isn't ugly either. I kind of liked its melody and the bright smile on her face. "You can drink when you're eighteen in Aussie, dumb ass!"

"Oh yeah!" I excitedly look at all the drinks behind the bar. "I completely forgot!"

Lyra waves the bartender over, still laughing at me. "Hey, Charles!"

The bartender smiles and walks over to us. "Hey Trouble," he smiles at her. His gaze shifts to me and his smile stiffens into one you'd see an overprotective father wear. "And Trouble's... friend?"

I smile nervously. "H-hello Mr. Charles!"

'Trouble' watches the exchange with a subtle smile on her face. "Oh, Charlie! Don't scare the boy."

I lean over and whisper to her, "Too late. He's scary."

"Good!" Charlie lets out a gruff chuckle. "Okay kid, I'll start you off with a good ol' beer."

In a few seconds flat, a pint of beer is mere inches from me. "Thank you!"

I take a small sip and smile at the rich flavor. _Father was right. American beer is piss water compared to this._ I end up gulping half the thing down over the course of only two minutes. Lyra looks impressed.

"Thought you'd be a goody-two-shoes who's never even smelt alcohol," she confesses.

"Well, there are many things you don't know about me, Ioane," I smirk.

"Oh? Using my last name now, are we?" 

"You call me 'Uchiha' instead of my first name."

"Good point..." she leans into my face. "You're really pretty, ya know?"

I laugh. "Hey! I'm the guy. I'm supposed to say that to you."

She bites her lip and looks into my eyes. "Says who?"

"Thriteen-year-olds on Wattpad."

Lyra giggles softly and leans in a little more. "Can I kiss you?"

I check to make sure Charlie isn't looking and luckily for me, he's distracted by other customers. Instead of responding, I gently grab her chin and pull her mouth to mine. She wraps her arms around my neck and pulls us closer as our tongues invade each other's mouths. I can't tell if it's the alcohol on my breath or how good the kiss is, but something makes her delve deeper into my mouth. I settle my hands in her hair, sort of massaging her scalp while her kiss intoxicates me more than any alcohol I've ever had. In all of those 'bad boy' stories, the authors describe a fight for the ages battled by tongues, but this isn't like that. It's like we're dancing, completely in sync. It's the best kiss I've ever experienced. When we do pull away for air, her eyes sparkle with excitement as she smiles.

"Wow. Did Aurora teach you to kiss like that?" I ask out of pure curiosity.

"No. My ex-girlfriend did," Lyra shrugs.

It takes me a second to think about what she said. "Ohh, are you pansexual?" 

"Nope! I'm bi."

"Interesting..."

"I swear if you suggest a threesome-"

"No, no! I was just thinking."

"I thought I could smell rubber burning," Lyra giggles.

I frown playfully. "How rude."

In response, she pulls me back to her mouth and hypnotizes me once again. She then pulls away smiling. "I'm going to the loo. I'll be back soon."

I nod, my words stolen by her lips. I start sipping at my beer. It's not long before another girl walks up to me. 

"I saw you with Lyra, babe. I can't believe you're stuck living with that whore!" 

I just stare at her and blink for a couple of seconds. _What?_ "What?"

She gives me a warm smile. "My name is Olivia Wilson! I'm pretty sure we met when we were younger at one of your parent's functions."

"Oh?" I ask, clearly showing no interest as I have a few more sips of beer.

"Yeah! I asked my parents to pull some strings so you could stay with us, but they couldn't do anything. So I decided to come to your rescue."

"Uh, I'm good thank you. Please go away," I smile politely and went to take another sip of my beer.

She manages to cover the top of the cup with her hand, making my lips instead graze her fingers. "Hey wait-"

I sigh. "Olivia, was it?" she nods. 

"I don't want to ditch Lyra for you and I rather you didn't call her any names. She's great and it will take one phone call from her to get you banned from this lovely bar. So I suggest you leave me alone as I asked."

The witch huffs. "That bitch is already slutting around with Aurora and she gets you too? That's not fair!"

I chug the rest of my beer and deliver a sharp glare. "Listen, little girl. Women are supposed to support each other. Maybe if you weren't a bitch, she'd share with you," I say after setting my empty glass on the bar counter.

"She'll share, whether you both want to or not," she leans into me and puts her hands on my thighs to support herself. 

Feeling her hands so far up my thighs, unfortunately, turns me on a little and I become annoyed with her as well as my body. "Lady, back off. I said no!"

I try to push her back to her seat, but she manages to drape herself on my body, slipping her hands under my shirt and up my chest. "Stop it!" I go to push her away again, but my strength suddenly leaves me.

She smirks and whispers, "You're hard. You want it."

That annoyance towards my body I previously felt soon turns into a feeling of betrayal. The bar starts to blur around me and my mind races. _Did she... drug me?_ Here I was thinking only scummy men did this to women; I guess both genders are bad as each other. I start silently begging Lyra to come back. 

"Hey, young lady? Wasn't he with Lyra?" a male voice asks.

"Ch-chaarllliee..." I slur in an effort to alert him that I need help.

"Oh yeah. She went off with a guy and we passed when she left. Lyra asked me to make sure he doesn't get into some drunken fight," the bastard lies through her teeth.

"Are you sure? I don't thi-" 

"Yeah, dude. He's totally sloshed. I'm going to call him a taxi."

"Okay, then I guess."

"No..." I realize Olivia is making me walk toward the entrance of the bar. _Did Lyra really leave? She wouldn't do that, would she?_

"Lyra left you, Itachi. We're going to go to my house, have some fun and your dick is going to make me rich again," she starts rubbing me through my pants and I don't even have the strength to make her stop. 

"What the fuck?" I hear the voice of my savior.

"H-hey Lyra! I thought you le-left!" Olivia stumbles over her words.

Lyra gives her a dry laugh. "You're a real piece of work." 

I don't even see her fist fly out, but the next thing I know, Olivia is sprawled out on the ground. I stumble, only to fall into the arms of someone. I watch Lyra deliver a swift kick to the downed girl's ribs and face. She glances over at me and steps on Olivia to get to me. 

"Hey, Itachi..." she smiles softly.

"N-no police," I say before slipping into the haze.

∆∆∆∆∆∆

"-chi. I should-"

"-ou alone in a pub by-"

"-go through this. I-"

I go in and out of my dazed state, doing my best to stay conscious. I can only remember Olivia and I don't know if she has me still. I try to force open my eyes, but my body just won't listen to me. I hear a familiar voice and I reach out to it. The more it speaks, the more clearly I start feeling.

"I never realized anyone would do that to you. I thought you were going to be okay in Aurora's bar, with Charlie right there."

"Lyra, this isn't your fault," another voice says. _Wait. I know the name Lyra._

"This is my fault! I knew she was crazy and jealous, but I left him alone anyway!"

"Lyra! If you want to blame someone, blame Olivia! She chose to drug-"

"She tried to fucking rape him, Aurora! So she could get pregnant and blackmail his family!"

I finally force open my eyes and try to look at the room around me. "Ly-ra?" Both blurry figures seem to turn towards me and one rushes over. It looks like a girl. _Olivia!_

"N-no! Don-don't touch!" I yell, telling my body to move whatever parts it can.

"Itachi, it's me! Lyra!" I feel something cold and wet drop onto my face. _Lyra?_

"I'll get a nurse!"

"Itachi. Try to focus on my face," the voice belonging to Lyra says. I try my best to do what she says, but my eyes can't focus very well. Still, I can make out her landmark features. 

"Lyra!" I manage to move my arms and open them. 

Lyra hugs me, holding on tightly. "You're okay. You're safe. That bitch will regret the rest of her miserable existence."

A few tears start rolling my cheeks. "Tha-thank you for hearing me."

"He's talking and moving a tad," the voice comes back. 

"Okay. Mr. Uchiha? How do you feel?" another male voice pops up.

"I can't see very well and my body won't listen to me," I try to steady my own voice. 

"Okay, well it looks like the girl drugged you with Rohypnol, more commonly known as the 'date rape' drug. Do you know how she could have gotten it into your system?"

"Sh-she put her hand over my cup when I went to take a sip," I pause before my voice cracks and swallow the lump in my throat. "I thought she was just trying to stop me from taking another sip. That's the only time she could have gotten the drug to me. I was holding my drink the entire time."

My eyes start focusing more and I see the man take more notes. "You really didn't notice her dropping a pill into your drink?" he asks. 

I take a deep breath to answer, but Lyra speaks before I can. "Are you blaminghim?"

"No, miss. I was just cur-"

"Get the fuck out of here" She yells at the man.

He looks taken aback by her interruption. "I-"

"I said get out. This isn't his fucking fault!"

The man leaves with a huff, but the other man stays behind for a few seconds. Deciding he doesn't want to get in trouble, he says, "I'm going to the vending machine," and leaves the room.

I take in my surroundings. It looks like a hospital. _Does that mean-_

"You didn't call the police, did you?!" I ask in a panic.

"What? No. You told me not to."

"Good."

Lyra pulls her chair closer to my head and tenderly brushes my hair out of my face. "Why don't you want me to report this to the police? That cunt needs to be locked up forever."

"My parents will find out and force me to come home. And the press might catch wind of this and follow me. I've gone to great trouble to do this program."

"But maybe it's for the best. What if-" 

"How were the police not called if I'm in the hospital?" I cut her off.

"Aurora's father just so happens to be good friends with a higher up in 'Hospitals Healthscope'. This is a private hospital owned by the com-company," she chews her lip as tears well in her eyes. "I'm sorry."

"What? Why?"

"I-I let her friends lure me away into the ally! They kept distracting me and asking stupid questions and I felt like something was wrong, but I ignored my gut because I thought maybe they were interested in me and my life, and possibly we could forge a friendship from all the years they hated me, but I should have listened to my gut and if it wasn't for Aurora seeing me and me having to leave, then she would have succeeded and taken you home and this is all my fault!" she suddenly loses it and starts crying uncontrollably. 

I don't really know what to do. She just sits there, tears running down her face and her hand over her mouth to stifle her sobs. It's only then I notice that her hands are wrapped in gauze and she's got a few stitches on her eyebrow. Her hair's in a mess and what's left of her makeup is smeared. She looks as disheveled as I feel.

I sit up as much as I can and take her whole appearance in. "What happened?"

"She beat the shit out of that girl. Olivia's in another hospital and her parents have been informed of what she's done. She's in the deepest shit possible when the authorities are excluded," the same man comes back in the room.

He comes in and starts rubbing Lyra's back. _I assume this is Aurora._ "You can either stay here or come back to my place with Lyra and I. I'm having the staff keep all of these records a secret until you're ready to prosecute."

"I can leave?" I ask cautiously. _I was afraid to come to the hospital in case..._

"Yeah. Why not? You're eighteen," Aurora smiles softly.

"Come back with us, Itachi. We can watch movies and snack and forget this night for a few hours," Lyra forces a smile. Unfortunately for her, I can tell she's still deeply upset. 

I missed my chance to console her and right now, I can't. Some tiny part of me does blame her. Part of me blames Charlie and Lyra and myself and the people who created Rohypnol and the universe for letting this happen to me. If Charlie had just noticed my dazed look; if Lyra wasn't tricked; if I had noticed Olivia drop a pill into my drink; if those people never created this evil drug; if the universe didn't seem to despise me... all of this could've been avoided. Now, I've got more trauma to add to my long list. _Just compartmentalize like you always do._

"Yeah. Sounds good," I answer.

"I'll go get the paperwork!" Lyra quickly volunteers herself. She practically runs out of the room. Maybe she can sense the blame I've placed on her.

"Hey, I know you've been through some shit, but you need to lighten up on her," Aurora says in a firm tone. "What happened to you is Olivia's fault and hers alone."

"I don't blame her."

"Don't give me that bullshit. I heard her crying. You said and did nothing to console her!"

I shake my head in disbelief. "I was almost raped! It's not my damn job!"

"I know and I'm sorry. I truly am. But you've got to look from her perspective too. The person Lyra believed she was responsible for was seconds away from being hurt in the most despicable way possible. She completely blames herself for this! The least you could have done is told her it wasn't your fault," he crosses his arms and stares me down.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Next time someone tries to kidnap and rape me, I'll make sure to take everyone else's feelings into account!" I raise my voice. _What does this guy want from me?_

"You don't understand! It's like she's reliving-"

"Enough, Aurora," Lyra opens the door. "Itachi's right. It's not his job to make me feel better right now."

Aurora sighs and walks over to her and kisses her forehead. "You're right. I'm sorry."

She walks over to me and carefully places the paperwork on my lap. I flinch slightly when her hand almost touches my thigh. She notices and her eyes well up with tears again. "I'm going to wait in the car."

Aurora and I watch her leave. When the door closes, I look at the paperwork and then Aurora. "What is she reliving?"

He hesitates for a moment. "It's not my place to tell you the full story. But her younger brother was hospitalized and later died. She blames herself."

"Why?"

"Because... well... technically it was her fault. Had she made a different choice, there's a slight possibility he could've lived."

"I see."

"Just-" he cuts himself off and shakes his head. "Give her a chance. You'll see how amazing she is if you can stop placing blame on her. She's human like the rest of us and behind the seemingly straightforward personality, she hides her own sadness. When she wants to, she'll open up to you, just like she did for me."

I roll my eyes and mumble, "Open her legs, maybe." 

As soon as I say that, my eyes widen in disgust at that thought. "I-"

"The hell did you just say?"

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean it!"

He glares at me. "I'm going to pretend you never said anything."

"Thank yo-"

"Only because you looked just as shocked as I was that you even thought to say that. Let me warn you though," Aurora walks right up to my bed. The man towers over me, especially sitting down. "I can and will fuck you up if you ever say anything like that to her or about her again. Just because she enjoys sex, doesn't mean she's anything like that cunt Olivia. She's not using me and she definitely would never use you."

It's quiet for a while, but curiosity gets the best of me. "Are you in love with her?"

He laughs dryly. "Not romantically. She's just a wonderful person who deserves the world. As one of the only people left who actually cares, I'm responsible for helping her find the right person."

I nod and start on the paperwork. My brain goes a million miles an hour, while also being slow and dragging stuff around. Lyra's got a big secret, much like I do, and now I want to know that secret more than ever. You can tell her relationship with her mother is in ruins. She was also right about the girls all hating her. She didn't want to talk about her life in America at all, so I assume that's where her secrets are rooted.

"Can you help me find a therapist?" I ask Aurora.

"Yes. We'll start looking tomorrow. Are ya done with that paperwork?"

"Yeah."

"Great. I'll go give this to the front desk."

Aurora then gets up and leaves me to my thoughts. When left in silence, I notice this weird anguish deep in my heart and I can't tell what's causing it. Maybe it's the trauma of today that just became too much. Maybe I feel bad for blaming Lyra. Maybe I regret coming to Australia. I thought this place was going to be the escape of a lifetime, but so far it's only hurt me in a way I never considered. _She was going to take me to her house, rape me for my sperm and rub salt in the wound by blackmailing my family with a child._ This would fuck up anyone. This is too fucked up to be something people would do. _Maybe I should go home._ Home is safe. Home is boring. Home is normal. But if I go home, my father wins. If I go home, my attacker wins. And I'll be fucking damned if I'm ever gonna let anyone win against me.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Before anyone tries to kill me for this chapter, hear me out. I really wanted to bring attention to sexual assault and not romanticize it. Things I've read always romanticize the almost assault, but they never go into the mental health effects it has and how sometimes, these things happen to men. It seems like Itachi was weak, but that's not it at all. He was drugged. There was nothing he could do. I depicted people around him ignoring the signs of him needing help because it's important to watch out for men as well. Itachi being a man doesn't mean nothing will happen to him. I'm aware of how Aurora is written in this and I'm sorry for making him seem insensitive, but I'm trying to establish his and Itachi's relationship.


End file.
